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The Red Square is a recurring symbolic object that appears in several Silent Hill games. While there is speculation, the significance of the red square is unknown.

Silent Hill[]

In the first game, the save point is a notebook on a red square.

Silent Hill 2[]

Red square

The save point texture.

In Silent Hill 2, red squares appear as save points and may symbolize Mary's letter with their shape. They appear as crumpled sheets of red paper and shine as if they were dipped in water or blood. The majority of red squares are found attached to walls and other vertical surfaces.

Unlike in the first game, it seems that protagonist James Sunderland does not have to physically contact the save points to activate them, as the first one is seen at the bottom of a well, far from James's reach.

Red squares can also be seen attached to the faces of Bubble Head Nurses in Brookhaven Hospital. The squares are caked in dirt or dried blood.[1] In a tweet, monster designer Masahiro Ito confirmed that the red squares on the Bubble Head Nurses are related to the nine red squares that serve as the final save point.[2]

SH2sp

Nine red squares shown near the end of Silent Hill 2.

In the labyrinth, the faces of the criminals are also covered with sheets, on which the names of their crimes are written.

In the Lakeview Hotel, James finds nine red squares that serve as the final save point in the game. The guidebook says this save point has to do with James's memories no longer being repressed.[3] These squares also appear on the Japanese cover of the game and Silent Hill 2: The Novel.

Masahiro Ito has been secretive of the exact meaning of the nine red squares, preferring to leave it open to the interpretation of the player. In September 2020, he dropped a clue stating "[The red squares] has a few reasons. I don't want to say too much, and will leave it to your imagination basically. But... for example, what number of hallucinations did James see in the journey?".[4] Notably, there are nine monsters in Silent Hill 2 that are physical manifestations of James Sunderland's subconscious, including Pyramid Head, the Bubble Head Nurses, the Lying Figures, the Mannequins, the Mandarins, the Abstract Daddy, Flesh Lips, Maria, and Mary.[5]

Silent Hill 3[]

Rough Square

Red square in the Otherworld Hilltop Center.

In Silent Hill 3, red squares appear in the Otherworld. Four red squares appear in Hilltop Center above the hanging body in the room where the shift to the Otherworld occurs and later in the upper part of the cage construction behind the Gallery of Fine Arts. They appear to be made of textile this time.

Face cover

Square image of the mouth covers a corpse's head.

Square sheets with the images of ears and screaming mouths also appear there. When asked what this means, Masahiro Ito answered:

"'Mouth' means Alessa's shrieking insanity from the bottom of her heart. SH3's 'Another world' where Heather enters is reflected in the Alessa's conscious. Alessa was bullied at school and suffered from her mother's cruelty. (Incidentally, mouth in SH2 means Mary's shrieking insanity.) Bleeding ear's case, I wanted to express Another world's personality like human. (That ear is Alessa's.) But I didn't wanna use the 'eye', because I didn't use it in Silent hill series creature's design. Bleeding means Alessa's conscious is mad. And the nurse red mouth means mad, too."[6]

Square sheets with ears depicted on them are attached to the back side of most wheelchairs that Heather encounters in the Otherworld.

Red squares can also be seen covering the mouths of the nurses.

Silent Hill 4: The Room[]

Love letter

The red letter.

In the fourth game, Henry Townshend receives red letters that are sent to him by Joseph Schreiber. Their text can't be read in Walter's Otherworlds so they appear there as blank sheets of red paper.

Henry uses the red notebook as the save point.

The umbilical cord of Walter Sullivan is in a red box.

Trivia[]

RaverSave

Red square shirt in Book of Memories.

  • Square tablets symbolizing characters and representing their sins appear in Toluca Prison in Silent Hill 2. The Tablet of "The Oppressor" could be considered a red square.
  • Square cages with red curtains appear in the Otherworld Brookhaven Hospital and church.
  • Four rectangular plates that symbolize murder victims are used to open the hole in the bathroom of Room 302 in Silent Hill 4. The Temptation Placard could be considered a red square.
  • Red squares also appear in the psychedelic video Ki-No-Ko. They are seen flying on the streets and sliding on the walls.
  • In Silent Hill: Book of Memories, the male Raver class can wear a shirt with the nine red squares on it.
  • In Silent Hill: Ascension, players can customize their avatar. Among all the cosmetics available, players can choose a banner and a frame with a red square design.[7]

References[]

Gallery[]

Silent Hill[]

Silent Hill 2[]

Silent Hill 3[]

Other[]

v · e · d
Characters
Major Characters
James Sunderland - Mary Shepherd-Sunderland - Angela Orosco - Laura - Eddie Dombrowski - Maria
Other Characters
Ernest Baldwin - Amy Baldwin - Mary's Doctor - Rachel - Thomas Orosco - Mrs. Orosco - Jennifer Carroll - Patrick Chester - Mira - Harry Mason - Greys - Scott Fairbanks - Walter Sullivan
Monsters
Abstract Daddy - Bubble Head Nurse - Creeper - Flesh Lip - Lying Figure - Mandarin - Mannequin - Mary - Prisoners - Pyramid Head
Weapons
Chainsaw - Chinese Cleaver - Great Knife - Great Spear - Handgun - Hyper Spray - Pipe - Revolver - Rifle - Shotgun - Wooden Plank
Locations
Baldwin Mansion - Blue Creek Apartments - Brookhaven Hospital - Church of the Rebirth - Dog House - Heaven's Night - Jacks Inn - Labyrinth - Lakeview Hotel - Lake Shore Restaurant - Neely's Bar - Motor Home - Observation Deck - Pete's Bowl-O-Rama - Rosewater Park - Silent Hill Historical Society - Silent Hill Ranch - Silent Hill Woods - South Vale (Carroll Street - Katz Street - Lindsey Street - Nathan Avenue - Neely Street - Rendell Street - Saul Street - Vachss Road - Wiltse Road) - Texxon Gas - Toluca Graveyard - Toluca Lake - Toluca Lake Island - Toluca Prison - Wiltse Coal Mine - Wood Side Apartments
Terms
Flashlight - Fog World - Little Baroness - Manifestation - Map - Monster - Otherworld - Radio - Red Square - Siren - Seal of Metatron - UFO Ending - Sexuality - Toilets
Archives
Memos - Items - Keys - Puzzles - Soundtrack - Secrets and Unlockables - Pachislot
v · e · d
Characters
Major Characters
Heather Mason - Douglas Cartland - Vincent Smith - Claudia Wolf
Other Characters
Harry Mason - Alessa Gillespie - Leonard Wolf - Stanley Coleman - Lisa Garland - Cheryl Mason - Jennifer Carroll - Joseph Schreiber - James Sunderland - Greys - Happy Birthday Caller - Danny - Confessor - Robbie the Rabbit - Sewer Fairy
Weapons
Beam Saber - Flamethrower - Handgun - Katana - Knife - Maul - Pipe - Shotgun - Stun Gun - Submachine Gun - Unlimited Submachine Gun
Monsters
Closer - Double Head - Glutton - God - Insane Cancer - Leonard Wolf - Memory of Alessa - Missionary - Numb Body - Nurse - Pendulum - Scraper - Sewer Monster - Slurper - Split Worm - Valtiel
Locations
Borley Haunted Mansion - Brookhaven Hospital - Carroll Street - Central Square Shopping Center - Chapel - Construction Site - Daisy Villa Apartments - Happy Burger - Happy Carousel - Hazel Street Station - Heaven's Night - Hilltop Center - Jacks Inn - KMN Auto Parts - Lakeside Amusement Park - Last Drop Cafe - Nathan Avenue - Underpass
Terms
Flashlight - Fog World - God - Map - Metatron - Monster - Otherworld - Paradise - PTV - Radio - Real World - The Order - Manifestation - Seal of Metatron - UFO Ending - Sexuality - Halo of the Sun - Red Square
Archives
Items - Keys - Memos - Puzzles - Soundtrack - Limited Edition Soundtrack - Secrets and Unlockables - Pachislot
v · e · d
Characters
Major Characters
Henry Townshend - Eileen Galvin - Walter Sullivan - Cynthia Velasquez - Jasper Gein - Andrew DeSalvo - Richard Braintree - Joseph Schreiber
Other Characters
Frank Sunderland - Billy Locane - Bobby Randolph - Eric Walsh - George Rosten - Jimmy Stone - Mike - Miriam Locane - Peter Walls - Rachel - Rick Albert - Robbie the Rabbit - Sein Martin - Sharon Blake - Steve Garland - Toby Archbolt - William Gregory - James Sunderland - Mary Shepherd-Sunderland
Weapons
Aluminum Bat - Chainsaw - Handgun - Submachine Gun - Knife - Pipe - Bug Spray - Chain - Eileen's Bag - Golf Club - Nightstick - Pickaxe of Despair - Revolver - Rusty Axe - Riding Crop - Spade - Stun Gun - Torch - Wine Bottle
Monsters
Bottom - Conjurer - Eileen Head - Ghost (Victim 16 - Victim 17 - Victim 18 - Victim 19) - Greedy Worm - Gum Head - Hummer - Patient - Sniffer Dog - The One Truth - Toadstool - Tremer - Twin Victim - Wall Man - Wheelchair
Locations
Albert's Sporting Goods - Ashfield - Bar Southfield - Garland's - Hotel South Ashfield - Room 302 - Room 302 of the Past - Silent Hill Woods - South Ashfield Heights - South Ashfield Station - Spiral Staircase - St. Jerome's Hospital - Toluca Lake - Water Prison - Wish House Orphanage
Terms
21 Sacraments - Death Machine - Haunting - Holy Candle - Manifestation - Map - Monster - Real World - Ritual of the Holy Assumption - Saint Medallion - Sword of Obedience - The Order - Walter's Otherworlds - Great Knife - Sexuality - Halo of the Sun - Red Square
Archives
Items - Keys - Puzzles - Soundtrack - Limited Edition Soundtrack - Secrets and Unlockables - Memos
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